Accomplishment Coaching

Remember starting that new job?  Or moving into a new position after a promotion?  As exciting as it can be, it frequently comes with some challenges, especially for a new sales manager.

So, what are the greatest challenges a new sales director / manager faces?  And most importantly, what are some ways to move beyond those challenges?

1) Overcoming the context of “You need to fix the mess your predecessor left behind.”

Suggestion = Start a dialogue with your boss and direct reports to get their experience of your predecessor complete. No matter what happened with your predecessor, you’re walking into an existing context that may not support your success. Context is decisive, so if you don’t address this, you will have a heck of a time “proving yourself” because your boss and team will be constantly comparing you to your predecessor rather than the actual goals of the organization.

2) Align the existing sales team on your vision, commitment and goals for the organization.

Suggestion = A new sales director/manager (like any human) will automatically focus on their performance. That’s not your job. Your job is to publicize your vision, commitment and goals for the organization by fostering partnerships, defining clear expectations, and implementing a uniform project design or results plan that everyone is accountable to - including you.

3) Ensuring an effective and fair system for having the right team in place.

Suggestion = Fostering authentic and responsible relationships with your team AND defining crystal clear expectations is paramount. In doing so, you have the ability to inspire, acknowledge, discipline and terminate members of your team with the fewest negative consequences. Have a clear results measurement system, publicize it, coach your team to take appropriate action on the plan, offer feedback immediately, and don’t be afraid to make changes to the team at any time.

As a new leader, you have a terrific opportunity to make a difference.  By focusing on serving your new team, you will accelerate relationships and results immediately.

Preston True Career Development, Leadership Development, Marketing Business Development, Career Development, Coaching, Entrepreneur, Leadership, Sales and Marketing

Yesterday, I had a conversation with Alex, a business owner who expressed his frustration with the current state of affairs.  He’s coming off a roller-coaster year in revenues and worried that 2010 will be the same or worse.  The exasperated question came about half-way through our conversation, “Why does this have to be so difficult?”

I had a conversation with Jeff, another business owner later in the day who’s had three consecutive years of increased growth.  His question to me was a bit different… “When will this actually become difficult?”

The similarities in business, service and geographic location are clear between these two owners. 

So what is it that creates the seemingly enormous difference between the two?  How come one is having the experience of dread while the other is having the time of his life?

I asked and here’s what I found:

Consistency vs. inconsistency - Each year, Jeff makes a commitment to employ only three marketing strategies for the year and to stick with them regardless of the results each provides monthly.  After 12 months, Jeff determines whether to stick with it or start a new strategy.  When asked, Alex shared that he’s tried more than seven marketing initiatives during the past six months.  If he felt it wasn’t working, he’d jump to the next idea.

Integrity vs. incongruity - Jeff makes a point to keep his intentions, speaking and actions aligned no matter what the effort.  He shows up on time, follows through on all commitments, and practices saying “no” more frequently than saying “yes.”  Alex is rarely on time, gets complaints from staff that he rarely follows through, and finds himself overwhelmed consistently.

Action vs. inertia - Jeff starts every day mapping out the five most important actions to take that day, then takes those actions.  Alex spends most of his day reacting to the concerns and emotions of the day.

Neither business owner is a rock star or a buffoon.  They are simply examples of the way we support or cripple ourselves.  Although our present circumstances frequently dictate our behavior and attitude, we really do have a daily choice to be a Jeff or an Alex. 

Which one are you right now?

Choose powerfully,

-Coach Preston

Preston True Leadership Development, Marketing Business Development, Coaching, Entrepreneur, Leadership, Personal Development, Sales and Marketing

Goal #144 - “Ask my partner to give three hours of his/her time per week, to release me to do something I really enjoy.” ~ Thomas Leonard, www.thomasleonard.com

Can you imagine that? 

Most of us can’t.  Time is just too scarce.  Just too valuable.  Plus, we’re the only ones who can do what we do.

What a crazy trap we set for ourselves.  Much of it is based in ego; the rest based in the concept that suffering under current circumstances is still more comfortable than changing them.

So why not ask your partner, friend, spouse or colleague to give three hours of his/her time this week.  Sure it might seem a bit uncomfortable, but imagine what those three hours will be like if you’re doing something you really, really want to do.

If you’re really saavy, you might just consider spending those three hours developing even more awareness and breakthroughs around time - check out our Time Leadership Workshop on February 25^th.

Tick tock,

- Coach Preston

Preston True Career Development, Leadership Development, Marketing Business Development, Client Development, Entrepreneur, Personal Development, Professional Development, Sales and Marketing

Notice is guaranteed

Expert marketer (and dare I say philosopher), Seth Godin, offered one of the most powerful ideas I’ve heard in years:

“The reason they want you to join them is, that once you do, then they can ignore you.”

How frequently do we want to fit in?  Isn’t that the lifeblood of most all communities?  So what could Seth Godin mean?

Perhaps leadership is what he’s inviting us to consider.

Leadership means:

• Being different when all others want you to be just like them
• Being outrageous when all others want to be safe
• Being loud when all others want to be quiet
• Being creative when all others choose to react
• Being responsible when all others prefer the familiarity of victimization
• Being on the margin when all others race for the middle

Communities, businesses, families and organizations require us to join them so they can thrive.  But joining them doesn’t have to mean subscribing to “sheepdom”.  Be willing to bring your crazy ideas, your over-the-top energy, your unrelenting pursuit of integrity, and your quest for excellence.

Leadership Practices:

1. Notice where you complain and don’t act in your business, family or community
2. Make a list of 20 things you’d like to change in your business or life
3. Starting today, make one of those changes - then make one change per day for the next 20 days
4. Practice asking “For what?” about and in all meetings and conversations - (Is the meeting and conversation truly in service to what you’re trying to create?)
5. Practice embracing and having compassion for criticism, upset and funny looks - avoiding those means you’ve moved to the middle
6. Make a list of your three favorite leaders and ask “What status quo are they unwilling to join?”

A bumper sticker on a neighbor’s car reads, “Women who behave will never make history.”

I love it.

Happy Attention-getting,

- Coach Preston

Preston True Leadership Development, Marketing, Spirituality Coaching, Entrepreneur, Faith and Business, Leadership, Personal Development, Professional Development

The power of more

Partnerships are a funny thing.  We seem to love creating them, but it often seems we have real struggles sticking with them.  So what gives?

Rarely intentional, we enter personal and professional relationships without truly considering what’s important for each one of us.  The Gallup Management Journal ran an article last year that identified the three “most important statements in determining how well your abilities mesh with those of your collaborator”:

1. We compliment each other’s strengths
2. We need each other to get the job done
3. He or she does some things much better than I do, and I do some things much better than he or she does

Although this can apply to personal partnerships as well, I wanted to give an example of how this so critically applies to professional partnerships.  Let’s use our old friend, Stan, as an example.

What Stan knows about himself is the following:

He’s created a successful business over the past 12 years primarily because he’s great at fostering relationships, freely expressing compassion, mentoring and developing his staff, being highly self-aware, and upholding integrity. 

But he also realizes that he’s often too narrowly and short-term focused, jumps too quickly to fix symptoms rather than identifying the root problem, and lacks critical decisiveness in taking action.  This often puts him in a position of complying with the views of others and current circumstances.

When I asked Stan who he felt would be a good fit as a potential partner, he suggested he’d look for someone who has a high level of relationship building skills, sees a similar future for the business, and is willing to weather the bumps of partnership.

If we take a look at this more critically, Stan was really looking for someone who was very similar to himself.  Of course he would… he’s built a successful company on the culture he’s created.

But that’s exactly what Stan doesn’t need.

Rather I suggested he look for someone with the following characteristics:

• Willingness to speak powerfully and pointedly, even if he/she occasionally steps on some toes
• Has little interest in the symptoms of business challenges but can see the root-causes
• Maintains daily focus on the five, ten and fifteen year future of the business
• Has a focus and drive for business results and keeps individuals and teams accountable for results
• Regularly displays courageous behavior in making decisions and taking action

At first Stan was completely resistant… “That person will get crushed in my company.”  Eventually, he began to see exactly why that type of partner would be best.  Through interviews with his staff in which he asked what they thought his leadership gaps were, they almost perfectly outlined the above description.

A year later, Stan and his partner Mary have grown the business significantly, hired more effective staff and shifted the company culture from being 100% “nice and friendly” to “nice and friendly AND results-oriented”.

Stan found a business partner who compliments his strengths, keeps him accountable to results, and is able to do what he can’t.  He does the same for Mary.

Powerful partnership is often most effective with clear difference rather than similarity.

Leadership Practices:

1. Schedule interviews with your staff over the next two weeks and ask the following questions:
   1. What do you see are my gaps in leadership?
   2. If you were going to partner me with another leader, what qualities would that leader possess?
   3. What two actions would you assign me to practice more effective leadership?
2. Write out the three top characteristics you bring to the table as a business leader
3. Notice how many times your actions say “I can do this all on my own” - what are the results?
4. Publicly share your gaps with at least two people, and especially with your current business partner

The myth of “individualism” died long ago, but there’s a large contingent of business owners who still buy into it.  If you’re ready for a new level of success, I invite you to consider a partnership or, if already in one, revisit it.

If you (and your partner) are interested in discovering exactly what you do and don’t bring to the table, please contact me to take my Leadership Circle profile.  I’ve found no better profile to support effective partnership development.

Happy Cahoots,

- Coach Preston

Preston True Career Development, Leadership Development, Marketing BNI, Business Development, Client Development, Coaching, Entrepreneur, Faith and Business, Leadership, LinkedIn, Professional Development, Sales and Marketing, Social Networking, Spirituality